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Friday, April 27, 2012

Off Campus Student Housing: Some Frequently Asked Questions

Are you a student planning to study
internationally in the near future, at a college or university in a foreign
country? Have you made a decision yet
about where you will live during the course of your studies? The opportunity to study abroad can be the
experience of a lifetime, but as you are probably well aware, taking advantage
of this type of opportunity involves a lot of planning, including making all
the necessary arrangements with regard to accommodations. This can be difficult to do, especially while
living outside the country and you probably have plenty of questions you need
answered before you make any final decisions.
If this is the case, the following information may prove very useful. Here we have compiled a list of some of the
most frequently asked questions regarding off-campus housing, with a short and (hopefully)
helpful answer for each question.

Off
Campus Student Housing: Answers to Some
Frequently Asked Questions

As an international student there are
essentially two general options in terms of where you can live during the
course of your studies. The first is
stay on campus, typically in a residence hall or dormitory, but space for on
campus housing is usually very limited, and there may be a waiting list of up
to one or two years before on campus housing becomes a realistic option for
you. That leaves off campus housing—the
subject we will cover below with some frequently asked questions:

I’m
interested in locating off campus student housing. What should I do first?

The first—and best—step to take when trying
to arrange off campus housing is to contact the university you plan to
attend. Most universities have a student
housing office (some even have an office dedicated to international student
housing), with employees who are trained in finding housing solutions for
international students studying abroad.
By doing this you’ll be able to get contact numbers for the various
housing options near the campus, and most universities now have a student
housing database that you can search from your own computer. They may even be able to supply you with all
the forms you need (applications, financial assistance forms, etc.), and a list
of tenant’s rights and responsibilities.

What
are the various types of off campus student housing available?

Depending on the country in which you plan to
study, there are many possible off campus student housing
options. If you would like to live
alone, becoming the primary leaser or renter, there are apartments,
condominiums, houses, duplexes and townhomes.
If cost is an issue, which it is for many students, you could look for a
room in a private home. You could also check
the student housing database for “roommate wanted,” advertisements, thus
allowing you to split the various housing costs, including rent, utilities and
other services.

What if
I need furniture?

Many off campus student housing options come
pre-furnished, but if this is not the case with the place you have selected,
try checking around at garage sales, discount stores and online wholesalers to
find what you need.

How
will I get to school?

If the house, apartment or condo you select
is not near enough to the university to allow you to walk to your classes, check
with the student housing or student services office for information on public
transportation within the city. Most
university-towns have buses or even shuttles that drop off at various points
along the school grounds.

Off campus student housing, whether you
decide to live alone or with others, can greatly enhance the study abroad
experience. This option allows for much
more freedom and independence—an opportunity to set your own schedule without
being bound by some of the rules you’re likely to encounter with most on-campus
student housing situations.

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SpainExchange.com is a comprehensive international student resource which includes study abroad schools and programs in nearly every country worldwide, student housing, exchange students and host families, language exchange partners, volunteer programs, and information on studying and living in many parts of the world.